One of the first B.C. business delegations to jump into China’s ambitious transcontinental economic initiative (OBOR) said it needs more support from the province to fully develop the market’s potential.
Officials from Richmond-based North America Investment Association (NAIA) reported last week upon their return from the Hong Kong Belt & Road International Food Expo that the delegation – made up of 12 companies from across Canada – secured three memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with major Chinese partners for future trade.
Interest at the show for Canadian agrifoods from both Chinese domestic buyers and third-party countries covered in the OBOR regions of Central and Southeast Asia was also “extremely high,” said NAIA president Amy Huang.
“We were lucky this year because the organizers placed our booth – the Canadian delegation booth – right at the entrance of the convention site [Hong Kong’s AsiaWorld-Expo], so we got a lot of exposure,” Huang said. “People in these markets really care about the source of their food, and Canada has a sterling reputation in that regard.… We signed quite a few deals, including some that are immediate orders that we’ve already shipped out.”
The biggest of the deals, Huang said, were the three Chinese MOUs with the governments of Tier-1 interior city Chongqing (population 30.5 million) and Tier-2 city Nanjing (metro population 11.7 million), as well as with northeast province Heilongjiang’s Beidahuang Group – China’s largest agricultural conglomerate, whose 2016 revenue was approximately US$18.33 billion.
Huang added that the group also signed a smaller $5.7 million MOU with the city of Guangzhou – another Tier-1 city – specifically on the importation of health food products.
NAIA estimated the overall value of the three major MOUs, if built out to full potential, to be worth 9 billion RMB ($1.7 billion), but conceded that the figure is somewhat pie-in-the-sky given that no specifics on how the groups will co-operate (specific orders of certain commodities and/or cross-border investment) have been determined.
Nonetheless, Huang said it was a good start, but remained miffed that the delegation did not receive provincial or federal support.
“Given the situation we are in with the United States, the market in China and OBOR is really crucial for us.… We are looking for specific actions from government to help us, because it is very expensive for B.C. SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises] to go abroad like this, especially to an expensive city like Hong Kong.”
B.C. State of Trade minister George Chow said the government understands the importance of the province’s SMEs, which make up an estimated 90% of the provincial economy, but added that the government has to balance the tax rate and support across a wide spectrum of business entities.
He added that the government is also trying to help in other ways, such as lowering B.C.’s cost of living.
“There is a need to provide for these [SME] expenditures, but there is also an equivalent need to earn and save money,” Chow said, noting the launch of projects such as a new acute care tower at Richmond Hospital and the $80 million replacement of Vancouver’s Eric Hamber secondary school. “Our government understands the issue here is very important … our objective is to make life more affordable to the people of B.C.”
The NAIA delegation said it plans to return to the Hong Kong Food Expo – which this year attracted 35 countries and more than 300 businesses – in 2018. The key showcased products this year included ice wine, blueberry wine, dried fruits, granola, maple syrup, flaxseed oil and other health-food items.
